When Nonny can't take you to find excitement, you need to find your own excitement close to home!

Pioneer Press

Posted:
07/14/2014 12:01:00 AM CDT

Updated:
07/14/2014 01:39:35 PM CDT

Writes Nina's (and Jimmy's) Nonny of Webster, Wis.: "I'm taking care of two of my grandchildren, ages 10 and 12, for two days a week this summer, as I have pretty much year-round since they were born.

"During the summer, they generally come to 'Nonny's house' in Webster.

"Problem is, I broke my foot several weeks ago, so taking them to the beach, playground, park, etc., just isn't possible without another adult along.

"Last week, as I was getting lunch together and Jimmy was getting impatient, I suggested that he go outside and look for snakes. He came running back a few minutes later, his eyes big and bright, to tell me he had found a snake, a big one, and also a lizard with eggs, a toad, and a bright green frog in the evergreen tree! We've had snakes before (long story) so I handed him my camera and told him to get me some pictures, and he sure did. The attachment is one of half a dozen poses from the hognose snake!

"So, that was exciting.

"But today, his sister, Nina, had some excitement of her own, though no photos to go with it. She was looking out the window and noticed a couple of adult turkeys in the field between our house and the road, so she decided to go out and see if she could get close enough to get a better look. As she got closer, they started walking away, but she could hear a flapping noise and kept going towards them. Suddenly she came upon a fluffy baby turkey, stuck somehow in the long grass of the field and flapping his wings wildly, while the rest of the family was leaving him behind. She quickly reached down and cupped him in her two hands and lifted him up. He immediately flew up and away from her and rejoined his family! She came running back in with big eyes and exciting news: 'Nonny, the most amazing thing just happened! I just held a baby duck in my hands!' (Not having seen a baby turkey, she thought it was a duck).

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"I think we're having a pretty fun and memorable summer in spite of the broken foot!"

Ask a serious question ... (resp'l)

Edgrr's mom: "Fevered Rabbit's entry about sewing buttons on your underwear gave me a flashback to the late '60s, when I lived and worked in beautiful downtown Detroit. One of my co-workers was dating a Detroit cop. He would dump off his laundry for her to do. I do not remember what he did to anger her, but she did his laundry and then sewed the fly shut on all of his undies."

Shutterbug nation

GREAT-GRANDMOTHER of Como Park: Great-granddaughter Blakely is just the right size for Barbie's dollhouse."

RRBB: "When I read Fevered Rabbit's entry in Thursday's BB about Dave asking his mom 'So what?' I was reminded of a different answer that I heard years ago. The response to the question 'So what?' that I am familiar with is: That is what the seamstress said in a nudist colony."

Twitty of Como: "With a nod to Fevered Rabbit and the twinkly response to 'So what?': The way I learned it, some 40 or 50 decades ago, was: 'Sew brass buttons on your steel underwear' -- a task somewhat more difficult, presumably, than simply sewing buttons on a pair of 'tighty-whiteys' ('tidy whiteys?' -- I'm never quite sure what I'm hearing with that tired cliche...). Anyway, while I agree the 'sew' phrase might be timeless, I'm pretty sure it's NOT known around the world. My lovely immigrant Filipino wife had never heard it until I uttered it to her one fine day, shortly after her arrival in America. It caused her to erupt in gales of laughter as she begged me to repeat it so she could memorize it for future use -- LOL (that last is a nod to Katrinka of Woodbury, also 7/10/2014, from the owner of four successive minivans, from 1994 to the present -- and I'm not even a soccer mom! LOL 2!)."

Our times

The Doryman of Prescott, Wis.: "Subject: Every present has a price.

"I have a condition which is thankfully not life-threatening but requires the injection of a minute (.05 ml) amount of a special cancer drug every few weeks. The price of this droplet is $2,500. The visit total is $3,100. I'm told I will need it for the rest of my life unless I want to start bumping into things. The clinic that administers it treats around 60 patients a day, and some get two shots per visit.

"What if we were to wake up one day to a universal cure for all cancers? What a joyous day that would be. Well, for those with cancer it sure would! For those who rely on the cancer industry, it would be life-changing as well. I'm sure most would gladly seek other careers in exchange for such a miracle, but there would be a period of adjustment and pain for that, too.

"Freed from cancer's demands, some could switch to treating the consequences of our extended lifespan with regard to Social Security. Now, there's can of worms!"

Our times (resp'l)

Friendly Bob of Fridley: "The recent submission from Elvis concerning the problems making change from $20.01 tendered for a bill of $14.76 [BB, 6/27/2014] reminded me of an experience I had at another food place -- one that specializes in Greek foods. I think my story is even sillier, though I know that never under any circumstances are BB submissions a contest!

"I was at the restaurant with another person, and we each ordered one of the specials, plus some spinach puffs (YUM!) and, I think, some baklava (one of the sweetest substances on earth). The bill came to $17.23, so I gave the nice young lady at the cash register a $20 bill and 23 cents (two dimes and three pennies, I believe) in change. She looked somewhat nonplussed, then reached for her calculator, punched in some numbers, and seemed a little surprised that she owed me a nice round sum of $3 in return.

"Seriously."

Life as we know it (encore + resp'l)

Rusty of St. Paul ("and Bayfield"): "My northern-Wisconsin shopping list was printed in Bulletin Board [7/9/2014]. It included gin, but Bulletin Board mused: 'No beer? In Wisconsin?' I will muse back that Bayfield/Lake Superior is a very special place, and as we know, in Heaven there is no beer!"

Larry of Stacy: "Several years ago, I was staying at my cabin on Pokegama Lake, near Pine City. After days of torrential rains, the neighbors and I were on a virtual island. Toward the end of the week, we were getting low on food, so my next-door neighbor and I decided we had better make a trip to town. This meant going via boat, tractor and car.

"As we were preparing to launch the boat, which was parked on the county road, another neighbor showed up and asked if we could get her some groceries, also. She had some relatives staying with her from Arizona, and they also were running out of food. She handed me a $20 bill and her grocery list. I didn't look at the list until I got to town. On the list were the following items:

"1 Quart of Jim Beam Bourbon

"1 Carton of Cigarettes

"1 Quart of Milk

"I was laughing so hard when I delivered the items, I didn't have the heart to tell her that the 'groceries' were more than $20."

See world

Another close encounter of the natural kind, reported by Lynne of Shafer: "My husband and I ride our bikes into town almost every morning, to get the Pioneer Press ... (well, that is, every morning that's not too hot or cold or windy or rainy.) It's a 10-mile round trip on country roads, with very little traffic. Most days, it's a nice quiet ride.

"We have a long driveway that winds its way back into the woods. As we approached the driveway last Monday, two sandhill cranes came swooping and hollering out across the road right in front of us. Scared the daylights out of me!"

Band Name of the Day: The Tidy Whiteys

Website of the Day, from No Sued Name: "A dear friend does a blog on nature, and today she wrote about a catbird. She included a link to a wonderful video that allows one to compare a catbird's mimicking to the birds it mimics. I found it delightful, and thought other BB'ers -- especially Al B, the chief ornithologist -- would appreciate listening to it ... though I bet Al B already knows about this site: http://tinyurl.com/birds-aped. Enjoy the birds, everyone!"